The National Consortia on Remote Sensing in Transportation (NCRST) were established in 2000 by the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA), in response to legislation in TEA-21. Four university-led consortia were set up, in Environment, Infrastructure, Traffic Flows and Hazards. UCSB led the Consortium on Infrastructure, partnering with Digital Geographic Research Corporation (DGRC), the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Iowa State University, TetraTech Inc, OrbImage, Florida DOT and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

The SAFETEA-LU bill of 2005 re-authorized funding for the program. USDOT's Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) advertized the new remote sensing program in 2006, and created seven consortia: three in freight congestion mitigation, three in infrastructure rehabilitation, and one in environment. (DOT announcement). UCSB leads the consortium on Freight—Metropolitan Ports.